Boy Scouts rescue Ann Curry after she breaks her ankle on a hike

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Boy Scouts are always prepared, but one troop went above and beyond the call of duty last month when they came across a hiker in need of medical help.

When New Jersey Boy Scout troop 368 happened upon a hiker who broke her ankle while hiking on New York’s Bear Mountain on April 5, they kicked into gear and put their first aid and scouting skills to use. The boys fashioned a splint out of stray pieces of wood and a stretcher out of poles and tarp. The group of eight then carried the wounded hiker down the mountain so her husband could get her into their car and drive to a hospital. All in a day’s work, right?

What the troop didn’t know is that the identity of the hiker in need was none other than award-winning journalist Ann Curry.

If you break a leg on on a mountain, I hope Boy Scout Troop 368 finds you. Boy am I glad they found me.http://t.co/AzTWlFzNcz

The encounter may have happened over a month ago, but the story is just now gaining traction thanks to a recent article in Scouting magazine.

It turns out, Curry’s family had carried her as far down the mountain as they could, and she even told the boys to go on ahead, but they refused to leave her. According to their scout leader Rick Jurgens, the boys made a “textbook splint” with no prompting from him, a professional EMT.

“We work on these requirements, and here’s an opportunity where it was a true test of all those First Class, Second Class first-aid requirements,” Jurgens says. “They got to use it and use it for real. And they did an outstanding job.”

In a letter to the Scouts after her miraculous rescue, Curry thanked the troop for their emergency readiness. “Discovering I was unable to walk, and needed to get down the mountain for medical care, you immediately set about to help,” Curry wrote, praising them for going “above the call of duty.”

The funny part is, Jurgens didn’t tell his troop who Curry was until after she had left. They just helped a stranger who was in need, perfectly showcasing what Boy Scouts are supposed to do.